Saturday, January 12, 2008

Transparency transfers

While I love new technology, sometimes in the art world it can be a pain in the a**! Particularly when you find that a product that you used to use is becoming redundant because of newer technology. Case in point - inkjet transparency film. This was used for overhead projection units and is a dying product because of Powerpoint presentations on computers. A particular brand of transparency film that I've always used was the Apollo Inkjet Transparency Film for Inkjet Printers. I've since found out that it's being phased out. You can still buy the transparency film but they seem to have changed formulation which means that the film that's on the side that you print on is much thicker....meaning it's more difficult to get it to release when you want to do an inkjet transparency transfer using rubbing alcohol!

These newer ones will still work with gel medium as the transfer medium, but I particularly like the ease with which rubbing alcohol spritzed onto the printed image and then burnished onto a page will work. The 3M brand of inkjet transparency film is also supposed to be as good as the previously readily available Apollo....I have yet to track it down but will try to do so before my Apollo stocks run out!

These atc's are made using the alcohol and transparency transfer technique... (I coloured the silver German Scrap using "Bottle" alcohol ink....lovely!)

Also, you don't always have to do transfers onto printed or patterned paper. These next 2 are done straight onto plain coloured cardstock. Though the first one I did attach a dictionary quote onto the cardstock first, then did the transfer over the top of it...worked a treat! "Menopause Mauve" is not a usual colour for me to use, but it suited this pic of ol' Liz!

warning: a bit of vintage nudity in this next one.... love the distressed look that you can get with transfers...without even trying!!!!

I thought I had some using the gel medium/transparency method of transfers but I think they are half-done. I'll get them finished and up for viewing, though you won't really be able to tell the difference on the computer screen. It's something that you can see more clearly irl (in real life). The gel medium I use is Golden Soft Gel in matte or Golden Soft Gel in semi-gloss.

On another note, my son, his girlfriend and their puppy leave us tonight to fly back to the East Coast for another year, he has 2 more years in the air-force but is going to try to get posted back here before then. AND we only had one testosterone-fuelled argument between my two grown "boys" in the 4 weeks he's been here!!! Bargain!!! (Jarred, the one who's leaving is 22 and my other son Cort is 19 - still 'boys' to me though!)

5 comments:

Kelsey Your boys will always be your boys Im afraid that's a mother thing.Love your ATC you have made .I hate when you use something then they stop making it frustrating eh.JenPs You would be kelsey if you didnt do Nudes LOL

I always enjoy the quotes you use, Kelsey! Go check out Officeworks -they've got some journals, lanyards, pencilcases etc with a gothic theme - crows on trees, skull and cross bones and graves on the front - thought of you the moment I saw them (Morley store).

Technical question. I having trouble making transfers with transparencies I had made at Kinkos. I used gel medium and couldn't get any of the ink to transfer. Is it possible Kinkos using a film or printing process that is the source of my problem? Thanks. You do wonderful work.DP

Follow by Email

Translate

Search This Blog

Followers

About Me

I teach techniques in the form of Artist Trading Cards. My background was in costume design/making, then cloth sculptured dolls and finally mixed media and stamping. I'm a technique junkie, can't get enough of playing with different products to see what will happen.